Building muscle is essential for fat burning. As most people know, muscle burns more than fat. Each extra pound of muscle burns up to 50 calories a day, while a pound of fat burns just two.
Muscle mass has a number of other benefits as well, including:
? It prevents the loss of lean body mass that happens from dieting and/or aging
? Weight training workouts burn calories, just as aerobic do
? It helps change your body composition, which helps shape your body and keep you healthy
? It strengthens bones and connective tissue along with muscles
? It keeps you strong and active as you get older
Diet
Healthy Eating
Everyone talks about the importance of “eating right.” Healthy eating is vital for improving muscle fitness. Eating right consists of eating a balanced diet of protein, carbohydrates, fruits, and vegetables. According to the USDA food pyramid, this includes:
Grains. Whole grains such as whole wheat products, oatmeal, whole grain barley, and brown rice are much healthier than refined flours, like white bread and white rice.
Fruits and Vegetables: A healthy diet should consist of at least 2 servings of fruits and 3 servings of vegetables each day. 100% vegetable and fruit juice can be included in this category.
Milk and Dairy: Low-fat or skim milk and low-fat or fat-free dairy products help aid in weight loss and build strong bones.
Protein: A healthy diet should consist of lean proteins such as fish and skinless chicken.
Exercise
In order to achieve muscle fitness, it’s important to build your muscles. You can do this at a gym with heavy weights, but you can also do it at home with exercises that build muscle and strength, such as:
Bicycle. To do the bicycle, Lie face up on the floor and lace your fingers behind your head, then bring the knees in towards the chest and lift the shoulder blades off the ground, being careful not to pull on the neck. Straighten the left leg out to a 45-degree angle while at the same time turning the upper body to the right, bringing the left elbow towards the right knee. Then, switch sides, bringing the right elbow towards the left knee. This is a great ab exercise.
Squats. The ultimate exercise for the butt, hips, and thighs, squats are easy and require no equipment. To do a squat, stand with your feet hip-width apart and squat down, keeping back straight, abs in and your knees behind your toes. Squat down like you’re sitting in a chair and then return to the starting position, squeezing your butt as you stand. Repeat for 2-3 sets of 8-12 reps. You can add hand weights for more intensity.
Tricep Kickbacks. Stand with your fit hip-width apart and tip forward from the hips, keeping your back flat and abs in until your torso is parallel to the floor. Start with your elbows bent and pulled up to ribcage. Tighten the triceps and then straighten the elbow, bringing weights up behind you.Lower back down and repeat.
Hip Abduction. To do this leg exercise, lie on one side with your hips stacked and knees slightly bent. Lift top leg, squeezing the glutes, then lower back down without completely relaxing. If you want, you can use ankle weights for added resistance.
The above exercises don’t require any expensive equipment and are a great starting place for building muscle fitness.